Nudge Theory

I was on Three Counties radio today with Ronnie Barbour of ‘The One Show’ (TOOSH).  The topic was related to a BBC article that came out today – ‘Nudge not enough to change lifestyle.’  Here are some of the points I discussed:

What is Nudge Theory?

• Nudge Theory originated in the US through the work of Professor Richard Thaler.

• It was introduced to Britain in 2008 when David Cameron expressed an interest in the theory.

• This led to the development of Number 10′s Behavioural Insight Team – ‘The Nudge Unit.’

• Nudge Theory is about encouraging, or nudging, people to make healthier lifestyle choices without being ‘nannied’ and without losing freedom of choice.

• Rather than trying to overtly ‘change’ people’s behaviour, the idea is to subtly direct people down a particular path by altering their environment.

• At the core of the nudges concept is making healthier options more feasible, accessible, and appealing.

Why do we need Nudge Theory?

• Humans have deeply ingrained unhealthy lifestyle habits that are not easy to change.

• We have 2 ways of thinking – an automatic system and a reflective system.

• Automatic thinking – effortless and uncontrolled – tends to govern our unhealthy choices.

• Reflective thinking – requires effort, control, and awareness.

• To overcome habit-induced barriers to change, ‘reflective’ thinking is needed (e.g. a conscious effort to do something different, such as eat an extra piece of fruit a day).

How can nudges be used?

• iNcentives (i.e. as opposed to punishment or penalties, e.g. healthy food vouchers). We are loss averse – losing something makes you twice as miserable as gaining something that makes you happy. Thus, rewards work better.

• Understand mappings (e.g. help people map their options in order to make decisions that benefit them).

• Defaults (e.g. design health interventions that people opt out of rather than opt in to).

• Give feedback (e.g. inform people when they are doing well or how they might do better - again, this is based on rewards).

• Expect error (e.g. offer relapse prevention strategies).

• Structure complex choices (e.g. facilitate weighing up the pros and cons of different options).

Examples of a nudge theory as applied to health?

• Fruit at eye level and chocolate at a lower level – increases cognitive effort – the “cost” of choosing chocolate is increased.

• Altering the ‘default setting’ – people get salad with their meal unless they specifically ask not to have salad with their meal.

• Opting out rather than in to organ donation.

Are nudges effective?

• Simply asking the question, ‘do you want to quit smoking?’ has been found to encourage behaviour change.

• Nudges are about long-term benefits – we won’t necessarily see them now.

• Stages of change – a nudge can push us along those stages of considering or acting on change.

Fun examples of nudge theory in action:

• Amsterdam airport – a motif made to look like a fly was embossed in the mend’s urinals -  an 80% reduction in ‘spills’ and overall greater cleanliness in the toilets.

• Sweden – refer to nudge theory as “fun theory” – bottle bank fruit machine – game where people were invited to try and insert different colour glass into the correct hole – lights and sounds when they got it right.

• Car Manufacturer – have installed piano stairs alongside escalators in underground travel systems to encourage people to walk and exercise more.  People love it!

• Capture on camera the people who keep to the speed limit – entered into a lottery – the winning money would come from the people who were caught speeding.

Any questions?  Please don’t hesitate to ask.